AUSTIN, Texas -- Lance Armstrong wasn't born in Austin and he didn't grow up here.

President Bush calls with congratulations

PARIS -- Lance Armstrong received a phone call of congratulation from President George W. Bush as he stepped off the podium on the Champs-Elysees. "He's a nice guy, a Texan like me," said Armstrong. "He told me to come and see him at the White House," added the American, who was recently appointed a member of a presidential commission on cancer. At Andrews Air Force Base outside Washington, Bush told reporters before starting a round of golf: "I told him I was really proud of him, that he's an extraordinary athlete and an extraordinary man." "I told him give his wife all my best. I told him to come see me. I told him to just call. He has a standing invitation," Bush said. Armstrong recovered from a near-fatal cancer to win the first of his Tour titles in 1999. -- Reuters

He has a house in the state's capital city, but lives there only about six months a year. The Tour de France, which Armstrong won for the fourth straight time Sunday, is thousands of miles away.

Nonetheless, Austin has embraced Armstrong, who grew up in the Dallas suburb of Plano and moved to Austin for its hilly terrain as he developed into one of the world's top cyclists.

In 1996, Armstrong announced in Austin that he had testicular cancer. A year later, he returned to tell everyone he had survived and would race again.

"He has shared himself and his life with this city,'' said former Mayor Kirk Watson, who survived his own bout with testicular cancer. "Many Austinites feel like they went through his cancer and his survival with him. We watched him marry and have children, and basically he shared his life with us here in Austin in a unique way.''

Although he spends much of the racing season at his European home in Gerona, Spain, the ties that bind Armstrong to Austin are strong. Austinites peppered the city with "Go Lance'' signs as Armstrong pedaled toward his fourth Tour title.

The Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research is based in Austin, as is Armstrong's annual Ride for the Roses, which draws thousands for cyclists for a weekend jaunt into the hill country.

And when he's not racing, Armstrong returns to Austin to relax, recuperate and ride. His children -- son Luke and twin daughters Isabelle and Grace -- were born here.

"It's nice to be back in America, and it's nice to be back in Texas, but (really) it's nice to be back in Austin,'' Armstrong said last year after winning his third consecutive Tour de France.

The Austin American-Statesman newspaper has dedicated a lot of space to covering Armstrong during the monthlong Tour, sending a writer and photographer overseas for daily coverage that sometimes pushes its way onto the front page.

"I think it's a matter of civic pride,'' said Tim Lott, the newspaper's sports editor. "It's a different kind of following than you would get for University of Texas football, but the passion is thick, and it's a great story.''

Armstrong has filmed commercials in Austin. He carried the Olympic torch through a downtown street on a wintry afternoon last year.

On occasion, he can even be spotted standing in line to buy breakfast muffins at a local eatery.

And the city loves him for it.

In 1999, Austin threw Armstrong a parade after his first Tour title. There were plans for another celebration in 2000 but Armstrong's Olympic training got in the way.

Last year, when it seemed like the thrill of victory might start to become routine, thousands of yellow-clad fans turned out to cheer him yet again.

"He was saying, 'Can you believe all these people?''' Watson said. "He's very authentic. He is loved.''